The Youngstown State women's basketball team will try to finish an already solid November on a high note when it hosts Stony Brook at Beeghly Center on Friday at 7:05 p.m. Live audio of the game will be broadcast live on 570 WKBN and iHeartRadio, and live video and live stats will be on YSUsports.com.
The Penguins will enter Friday's game looking to get rid of a sour taste left from Tuesday's last-second loss at Northern Kentucky. YSU battled back from an early 14-point deficit against the Norse and led by five with fewer than 40 seconds remaining. The Guins went 1-for-4 from the free-throw line in the final 30 seconds, and the Norse scored four points in the final two seconds to steal the 66-64 victory. Brandi Brown posted her fifth straight double-double with 21 points and 15 rebounds, and Heidi Schlegel scored 15 points in her second game of the season. Shar'Rae Davis had 11 points and five assists before fouling out with 11 minutes remaining. YSU had its worst shooting performance of the year from the 3-point line, making just 6-of-27 for 22.2 percent. Interestingly, the Penguins were coming off a game in which they shot a season-best 8-for-21 from long distance in a big 76-56 win over Miami (Ohio). Even with the disappointing loss at NKU, the Penguins are 4-1 for the first time since the 1999-2000 season. A win against Stony Brook would give them five wins in November for just the second time in school history.
Stony Brook has won three of its last four games, and its lone loss since the season opener came in overtime. The Seawolves have their best start since 2005-06 with their 3-2 record, and they are one win away from matching their win total from all of last season. SBU won 56-48 at Robert Morris on Wednesday.
YSU will head back on the road to play at IUPUI and Cincinnati next week. The Penguins begin the road swing in Indianapolis on Monday at 7 p.m.
Tickets & Promotions
Tickets are available for purchase on YSUsports.com, by phone at (330) 941-1YSU, and at the main YSU Athletics Ticket Office in Stambaugh Stadium until 5 p.m. on Friday. The Beeghly Center ticket office will open at 6 p.m. on Friday. Friday will be YSU Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night, presented by Medical Mutual of Ohio, where a voucher presented to YSU's faculty and staff can be redeemed for four complimentary general admission tickets.
A Win Would
- Give YSU its first 5-1 start since the 1999-2000 season.
- Be YSU's first over Stony Brook and its second over a team from the America East Conference.
- Give YSU five wins in November for the second time in school history (1997-98).
Game Recap vs. Northern Kentucky
Northern Kentucky scored four points in the final two seconds to steal a 66-64 win from YSU on Tuesday at The Bank of Kentucky Center.
YSU led by five with 40 seconds left and by two with two seconds remaining. Kayla Thacker hit a leaning bucket around a defender from 19 feet away to tie the score at 64, and Melody Doss hit a runner in the paint off an inbounds pass at the buzzer following a Penguins turnover.
NKU led by as many as 14 in the first half, but YSU led by eight with 3:20 left.
Brandi Brown finished with 21 points and a game-high 15 rebounds, and Heidi Schlegel scored 13 of her 15 points in the first half.
Quick Notes
- Brandi Brown posted her fifth double-double in five games this season. She led all players with 15 rebounds, seven of which were on the offensive end. Only two other players had at least eight total rebounds.
- Heidi Schlegel was 3-for-4 from the field in the first half but finished 3-for-10 for the game as she continues to work back to game speed. She missed the first three games of the season with a concussion. Schlegel was 8-for-9 from the free-throw line.
- After posting season highs of 47.1 percent shooting overall and 38.1 percent shooting from 3-point range, YSU shot a season-worst 22.2 percent from distance.
- Shar'Rae Davis scored in double figures for the fourth straight game, but she fouled out with 11 minutes left. She led all players with five assists.
- NKU scored 22 points in just over five minutes to take a 22-8 lead with 11:56 left in the first half. YSU battled and trailed just 32-31 at halftime.
- YSU started 12-for-14 from the free throw line but made four of its last eight attempts.
Scouting Stony Brook
Stony Brook is off to its best start since the 2005-06 season with its 3-2 record. The Seawolves are one win away from matching their win total from all of last season. Stony Brook beat Robert Morris 56-48 on Wednesday, and its lone loss over the last four games came in overtime. Sabre Proctor leads the team with 10.2 points per game, and Jessica Previlon is averaging 10 points and 9.6 rebounds. Beth O'Boyle is in her second season as SBU's head coach.
Last Time vs. Stony Brook
Youngstown State shot 26 percent and trailed the entire way in a 54-47 loss at Stony Brook on Dec. 27, 2011.
The Penguins, who had shot 40 percent in six straight games, saw their road winning streak stopped at five.
Brandi Brown had 12 points and 18 rebounds for YSU, and Kenya Middlebrooks added 11. Stony Brook led by seven three minutes into the second half, and the margin was between three and six until a Middlebrooks 3 made it 43-41 with seven minutes left. YSU got no closer.
Series With Stony Brook
Youngstown State's 54-47 loss at Stony Brook last season came in the first meeting between the two schools. All-time, the Penguins are 1-2 against teams currently in the America East Conference. They beat Albany in 2007 and lost to Boston in 1986.
Brown Nearing 1,500 Points / 1,000 Rebounds
Brandi Brown is 54 rebounds away from becoming the third player in YSU history to record 1,500 career points and 1,000 career rebounds. Brown has 1,522 points and 946 rebounds in the first 95 games of her career, which equates to averages of 16 points and 10 rebounds. If she corrals her 1,000th rebound, not only would she join Wanda Grant and Dorothy Bowers as the only Penguins to reach 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds, she'd be just the fourth player in Horizon League / MCC history to reach those milestones. Brown currently ranks seventh in school history in points and third in rebounds.
A November to Remember
With a win against Stony Brook, Youngstown State would end November with a 5-1 record. That would tie the 1997-98 team for the most wins in November in school history. Included in YSU's four current wins are victories at Pittsburgh and Miami (Ohio), which are among its best victories as a program in at least a decade. YSU was 4-3 in November last season, completing the month with a 25-point home win over Western Michigan on Nov. 30.
Continuing Success vs. the MAC
Dating back to last season, Youngstown State has won five of its last six contests against teams from the Mid-American Conference. YSU has beaten Buffalo and preseason East Division favorite Miami this year, and it defeated Akron, Ohio and Western Michigan last season. The Horizon League is 7-1 against MAC teams this year with an average margin of victory of 15.1 points. Horizon League teams were 19-9 against MAC schools in 2011-12.
4-1: Best Start Since 1999-2000
- Youngstown State is 4-1 for the first time since the 1999-2000 season with its wins over Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Bryant and Miami (Ohio).
- The Penguins are three games over .500 for the first time since 1999-2000.
- YSU won its first three road games for the first time since the 1997-98 season.
- The Penguins had their first four-game winning streak since the 2007-08 season. They won four straight games by double digits for the first time since 1997-98.
Five Score in Double Figures at Miami (Ohio)
YSU had five different players reach double figures in scoring in Sunday's win over Miami. Brandi Brown and Liz Hornberger both tied for team highs with 18 points, Heidi Schlegel and Shar'Rae Davis had 12 points apiece, and Karen Flagg finished with 10. It was the first time since March 5, 2011, that the Penguins had five players reach double figures in scoring in the same contest. Prior to that contest, YSU hadn't had five players in double figures in the same game since the 2003-04 season. Melissa Thompson and Monica Touvelle both scored in double figures in the season opener, giving the Guins seven players who have scored at least 10 points in a game this season.
Half-Time Adjustments
With Sunday's game tied at halftime, YSU shot 63.6 percent and outscored Miami (Ohio) 51-31 in the second half to win 76-56. That's not the first time this season that YSU has shown a big improvement in the second half. Despite being 4-1, YSU has held the lead at halftime just once (Buffalo). The Penguins trailed Pittsburgh by 12 at halftime in the season opener and was tied at the break against Bryant and Miami (Ohio). The Penguins are averaging 26.8 points on 33.8 percent shooting in the first half and 41 points on 43-percent shooting in the second half.
Schlegel Returns to Line-Up
Redshirt sophomore forward Heidi Schlegel returned to the YSU rotation on Sunday and has promptly averaged 13.5 points, five rebounds and 2.5 steals in her first two games. Schlegel missed the first three games of the season with a concussion that she suffered in a preseason scrimmage. She was YSU's second-ranked returning scorer and rebounder heading into this season. Schlegel averaged 9.7 points and 4.6 rebounds in 27 games last season.
Hornberger Growing into Role
Junior guard Liz Hornberger made 6-of-8 attempts from 3-point range for a career-best 18 points on Sunday at Miami (Ohio). Hornberger has scored at least five points in four games this season and reached double figures twice. She had reached double digits in scoring just three times in her first two seasons. Hornberger, who coach Bob Boldon praises for her basketball knowledge and leadership on the court, has also improved her distribution. Her career high for assists in a game entering this season was three. She's surpassed that three times.
Focusing on Defense
YSU made a conscientious effort to improve its defense and rebounding through recruiting and placing a higher priority on it during preseason practices, and it is paying off in the early part of the season. Last season, YSU ranked last in the Horizon League last season in rebounding margin (minus-5.1) and second-to-last in scoring defense (67.5 points per game). This season, the Penguins rank second league in scoring defense (56.2 points per game) and fifth in rebounding margin (plus-0.2). The Penguins have held their first three opponents to an average of 56.2 points per game. That is a 14.5-point improvement from last season.
- The Penguins held four straight opponents under 60 points for the first time since the 1990-91 season.
- YSU held its first four opponents under 60 points for the first time since 1978-79.
- The 29 turnovers that YSU forced against Bryant were the most since Niagara had 30 on Nov. 13, 2007.
Davis, Brown Receive Accolades
YSU players Shar'Rae Davis and Brandi Brown have both received several awards in the first three weeks of the season.
Brown's Honors
- Horizon League Co-Player of the Week on Nov. 19
- CollegeSportsMadness.com Horizon League Player of the Week on Nov. 12.
- CollegeSportsMandess.com High-Major Player of the Week on Nov. 19.
- CollegeSportsMadness.com Horizon League Player of the Week on Nov. 26.
Davis' Honors
- Horizon League Newcomer of the Week on Nov. 12
Brown and Davis Scoring in Bunches
Brandi Brown and Shar'Rae Davis have scored in bunches at times during the early part of this season. Brown and Davis combined for 38 of YSU's 48 points in the second half against Bryant, including 12 points during a 14-0 run in the period. The pair combined to score YSU's first 25 points against Buffalo, and YSU had 30 in the period.
Brown and Davis are combining for 34.8 of YSU's 67.8 points per game, which equates to just over 51 percent. The last duo to combine for more than 50 percent of YSU's points were Breanne Kenneally and Alyson Vogrin with 53.8 percent in 2000-01.
Davis Impressing Early
Freshman Shar'Rae Davis has had a strong start to her collegiate career. In her first five games, she's averaged 13.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.2 steals. She's posted highs of 23 points, nine rebounds, nine assists and five steals. Brandi Brown was the last freshman to score at least 23 points on Dec. 5, 2009. The last freshman to record at least nine assists in a game was Lauren Branson, who had 13 at IPFW on Jan. 18, 2005.
Growth Evidenced by Turnarounds
YSU's continual growth over the last three seasons has been demonstrated so far in wins over Pittsburgh and Buffalo. YSU lost by 20 to the Panthers two years ago in head coach Bob Boldon's debut, and the Penguins lost 89-37 to Pitt in the 2009-10 season. YSU's 64-50 win on Nov. 9 was a 66-point turnaround from that loss in 2009-10. Further, the Guins beat Pitt and defeated a current Big East team for the first time since 1991. YSU also earned its first win over a team currently in a BCS conference since 1997. YSU's 60-50 victory over Buffalo on Nov. 13 was a 64-point turnaround from when the Bulls beat the Penguins 92-38 in 2009-10.
